A cartridge type soldering iron of the type at issue here has a releasable and replaceable tip cartridge. For example, a cartridge type soldering iron is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,839,501 issued to Cowell. Cowell discloses a cartridge type soldering iron which has a hollow cylindrical handle, incorporating an internal coaxial socket assembly, a connection to a power supply, and a cartridge housing support, and a soldering tip, a heater assembly, a tubular housing and a coaxial socket assembly. Another is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,710,304 to Yokoo, entitled cartridge type soldering iron with a releasable and replaceable handle.